Wartime 1939-1945

In
1940 first Edgar Lavington and then Paul Taylor joined the RAF as
Volunteer Reserve (VR) Pilot Officers which entitled them to wear the
coveted VR symbol on their uniform collars. (Those without the VR had
been conscripted!)

Pamphonic
Reproducers Ltd was mothballed at Banham’s Boatyard in St. Andrews
Road, Cambridge under the watchful eye of the factory foreman, Arthur
Henderson, who was not considered fit for military service. There are
letters from Arthur Henderson reporting to Paul Taylor on service issues
such as the large Pamphonic PA systems installed in various arms
factories around the UK such as the BSA (Birmingham Small Arms Company)
factory.

Paul
Taylor (and Edgar Lavington) worked on the then secret radar, and when
in London stayed at his parents’ grand London home at 56 Prince Albert
Road (Regents Park), which continued to act as a spares department for
Pamphonic while it was based in Cambridge during the war years. One
customer remembers piles of spares in the ballroom.